Veteran Community Care Workflow Checklist

Coordinated care, from referral to transition.

Caring for a veteran through VA Community Care takes careful coordination across the whole oncology practice. Each team member, from intake to billing, has a part in making sure care is authorized, documented, and shared with the VA. The Veteran Community Care Workflow Checklist gives community oncology practices a step-by-step guide for each stage of care for veterans treated outside the VA system.

Connecting every step of care: A clear, team-based workflow takes practices from the first referral through the end of treatment, with each step assigned to the team responsible for it.

Protecting against authorization gaps: Built-in checks before scheduling, on each treatment day, and ahead of authorization expiration help teams confirm that services, sites, and providers match the VA authorization.

Supporting safe medication management: Separate workflows for office-administered and oral anticancer medications help teams verify authorization, confirm the right dispensing pathway, and avoid duplicate prescriptions between VA and community pharmacies.

Strengthening communication with the VA: The checklist treats VA communication as ongoing work, not something left until therapy ends. It outlines which encounters, changes, and outcomes to document and send back to the VA.

Reducing billing and claims errors: Teams can align claims with authorized diagnoses and services and track denials by cause.

Planning for a smooth transition: End-of-treatment steps help practices send a complete treatment summary, reconcile medications, and confirm who manages ongoing follow-up.

Authorization requirements and VA processes can change. Confirm current guidance with your local VA Community Care office.

What’s inside the checklist

1. Referral Received – Intake: Identify VA Community Care referrals, confirm authorization, and flag the patient record in the EHR.
2. Authorization Validation / Prior Authorization: Confirm the authorized site, provider, diagnosis, and covered services, and set expiration alerts.
3. Obtain and Reconcile Medical Records: Request and reconcile pathology, imaging, treatment history, medications, and other relevant VA records.
4. Initial Community Oncology Consultation: Confirm the diagnosis and treatment plan, and identify needs that fall outside the current authorization.
5. Treatment Plan Financial Clearance: A hard stop before scheduling to review the full regimen against the authorized care.
6. Medication Workflow: Pathways for office-administered medications and for oral anticancer or specialty medications.
7. Treatment Scheduling: Verify that authorization, labs, and medication are ready, and educate the veteran.
8. Treatment Day Checklist: Checks for nursing and pharmacy before each treatment.
9. Communication Back to VA: The key encounters and changes to document and share with the VA.
10. Additional Services or Change in Treatment: When and how to start a Request for Services (VA Form 10-10172).
11. Claims / Billing: Align claims with the authorization and track denials by cause.End of Treatment / Transition Back to VA: Treatment summary, medication reconciliation, and handoff of ongoing care.

Built for the whole care team

This checklist is designed for the oncology team members who coordinate veteran care: front-desk and intake staff, nurse navigators, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, financial counselors and authorization specialists, and practice administrators.

Download the Checklist

Visit the NCODA Veteran Care Resource page to learn more and access resources that are helpful to veteran cancer patients.